If you have plans to create your website or already have one, you have surely heard of a term such as „SSL certificate” or „HTTPS”. You may have even fled the site due to the information that the site is „Not Secure”.
All these terms have a direct impact on the security of your website.
Many people say that these elements are only important for advanced Internet users or IT specialists, but they are mistaken. On sites without an SSL certificate, it is much easier to steal credit card numbers or sensitive customer personal data.
If you are still wondering whether your website can cope without SSL, we will try to dispel your doubts.
What is an SSL certificate anyway?
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is a technology for encrypting web traffic between the web server hosted at your hosting provider where the website is physically hosted and the customer's web browser, enabling the encryption of information exchanged between the two.
More information about SSL on Wikipedia - SSL
A user's private information will not go directly to a specific website, it very often passes through many other servers and networks where, in the absence of proper encryption, it can be read by unauthorised third parties.
When is our website secure? If our site is equipped with, most importantly, a well-installed SSL, visitors should see a padlock next to our domain name and HTTPS (an encrypted version of HTTP), which indicate that our server is securely connected to their browser.
How does an SSL certificate really work?
SSL certificates are based on the principles of public key cryptography, which uses two keys that are long strings of randomly generated numbers.
Public key - this is used to encrypt the message and is known to your server and is also available in the public domain.
The private key, is held by the addressee of the information - only the addressee has access to it and can only read it with it.
Let's use an example - if person A wants to send a message to person B, he must first encrypt it with person B's public key. B will then decrypt the message using the private key that only she has. If the hacker intercepts the message before B decrypts it, he will only receive an unknown cryptographic code.
Which sites need an SSL certificate?
The above messages are certainly very useful, but mainly for IT specialists. What is on the minds of website and shop owners can be found below.
Using the benefits of SSL is required when running a website or shop that:
- processes financial information (bank accounts, online orders);
- has user authentication (passwords and logins) in the database;
- stores sensitive data (dates of birth, insurance numbers) and medical information;
- holds confidential and proprietary information (legal documents, client lists, contracts).
- intends to sell products via Google Ads - specifically Google Shopping
Does every website have to have SSL?
Of course, not every website needs to have an SSL Certificate as this is usually used for securing credit card transactions, data transfer or login.
At this point, some of you may think out loud that, after all, you neither process important user information on your website nor have an online shop. So why apply for an SSL certificate?
SSL and SEO
In 2014, Google announced on its pages that it was starting to display pages with HTTPS before pages without it. From January 2019, the Chrome browser began marking HTTP pages as „! Unsecure” - customers often get confused when seeing this sign and report it to us as Unsafe. Currently, having an SSL certificate on your site is one of the three key factors that can improve your site's ranking in Google's search results.
Trust
People who see a green padlock next to a domain name generally treat it as trustworthy. This can influence a user's persuasion to register, convert on the site or contact.
Security
Website security, or what we mentioned earlier - websites without an SSL certificate are more vulnerable to hacker attacks. And yet, every website owner cares about the security of its users.
How do I add an SSL certificate to a website created in WebWave?
All websites that have been created in the WebWave website builder can have the SSL certificate enabled. The only requirements are paid hosting and a supported domain. The SSL certificate service neither increases your subscription nor requires an additional one-off fee.
A guide describing how to enable SSL on your website can be found here.
What if there is no SSL?
The unauthorised acquisition of confidential information by third parties can lead to a number of messy consequences including, but not limited to: loss of money, loss of trust and legal consequences related to breaches of privacy or failure to comply with obligations imposed by various legal acts.
